A Missionary Church: Introduction and Chapter One of Evangelii Gaudium |
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| Authors: | Antonio M. Pernia |
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| Abstract: | The article provides a summary and synthesis of the Introduction and Chapter One of Evangelii Gaudium (EG 1–18 and 19–49), where Pope Francis outlines his vision of the church and the program of his pontificate. He envisions the church as fundamentally a missionary church and sees the role of his pontificate as bringing about the transformation of the church into a missionary church. The article concludes by showing that Pope Francis’ vision of the church in EG echoes Vatican II's decree Ad Gentes and is shaped by his experience of the church in Latin America. Thus, it ends with two observations: first, that with EG, Ad Gentes’ statement that “the Church is missionary by her very nature” ceases to be merely a theological declaration and now becomes a concrete pastoral program of action; and second, that EG, where the concerns of the third world are allowed to shape the vision of the universal church, is an eloquent manifestation of the church becoming a World Church. |
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